The Semen Of Honeybees Has Antimicrobial Properties That Could Help Protect The Hive

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Very little is known about the immune system of bees, and how they fight infection. Photografiero/Shutterstock

Honey has been shown to have anti-microbial properties, but it turns out that this might not be the only fluid that bees produce with pathogen-killing abilities. It seems that the semen of honeybees contains antibodies that help defend the insects from a potentially deadly sexually transmitted disease, and that the males might be passing this protection on to the queens when they mate.